Mixed climbing

Did You Know?

• Fruit boots are lightweight boots with crampons bolted directly into the boot, standard in competitive dry-tooling and ice-climbing competitions.
• Mono-point crampons are preferred by mixed climbers for more precise footwork than traditional dual-point crampons.
• A stein pull involves inverting the ice axe and wedging the blade upward into cracks, then pulling down on the handle to gain upward momentum.

Description

Mixed climbing employs ice climbing equipment—double ice axes and crampons—on routes that are not sufficiently ice-covered to qualify as pure ice climbs with a WI-grade. These routes contain significant rock sections, which may be completely dry, as on some North American mixed climbs, or thinly coated with ice and snow, as common in Scottish mixed climbing, making pure rock or ice techniques unworkable. The climber inserts ice axe and crampon points into small cracks and edges on the iced-up rock to advance. For protection, traditional rock climbing gear is used because opportunities to place ice screws are limited; single-pitch mixed climbs are often fully bolted like sport routes. Mixed climbing can also be undertaken as free solo climbing, which carries greater risk. The discipline is closely related to alpine climbing, as many alpine routes contain long sections of iced and snow-covered rock that cannot be climbed as pure rock or pure ice. Mixed climbing is also linked to dry-tooling, a sport developed by mixed climbers on routes with no snow or ice; such climbs sometimes receive a D-grade prefix instead of M. Debate has arisen over whether mixed climbing resembles aid climbing rather than free climbing, due to the use of mechanical tools on natural rock. This has led to regulations on allowable equipment, including heel spurs, tool length, and leashes; most ice climbing competitions now ban leashes and restrict heel spur use.

History

Alpine and Scottish winter climbers had used mixed techniques for decades, but mixed climbing as a distinct sport emerged in 1994 when American climber Jeff Lowe ascended the roof of Octopussy (WI6, M8) in Vail, Colorado, creating the first M8-graded mixed climb. Rock & Ice later credited this ascent with inventing the sport. Interest grew rapidly, and from 1994 to 2003 difficulty levels rose from M8 to M13, driven by pioneers such as Stevie Haston in Europe (notably in Val di Cogne) and Will Gadd in North America (at the Fang Amphitheater in Vail and the Cineplex Cave in Alberta). In 2003, Italian climber Mauro Bole, finding himself too short for the crux on The Game (M13) in Cineplex Cave, lengthened his tools to complete it, sparking accusations that mixed climbing was akin to aid climbing. A parallel debate over heel spurs had already arisen; Will Gadd stopped using them, calling it 'barebacking,' and wrote a manifesto titled 'Spurs are for Horses, and Tools Are For Your Hands,' stating that any route climbed by sitting on a tool, hooking with knees or spurs, or using spurs is an aid climb. Competition ice climbing subsequently regulated tool use, including heel spurs, tool length, and leashes. In 2012, mixed-climber Ryan Nelson published an article in Rock & Ice titled 'Is mixed climbing still legitimate?'; Scottish climber Dave MacLeod commented that modern mixed climbing was approaching stagnation and that ditching heel spurs would only delay that outcome briefly. Although grade milestones have tapered since 2003, climbers such as Raphel Slawinski have noted mixed climbing's positive effect on alpine climbing standards, while others like Steve House have cautioned that reliance on fully bolted sport routes for the highest M-grades has not yet clearly influenced general alpine standards.

Grading

Mixed route grading approximates the ice climbing WI-system up to M6, but diverges as routes become very overhanging and eventually turn into roofs, which ice normally does not. M-grades focus on technical and physical difficulty, not danger; the R/X suffix is used to indicate poor protection, following the US system. Some M-graded climbs with no ice receive a D-grade prefix instead, as with Iron Man in Switzerland, rated M14+ and D14+. The American Alpine Club, republishing in 2013, provided descriptions for M-grades: M1–3 is easy and low angle, usually without tools; M4 is slabby to vertical with some technical dry tooling; M5 involves sustained vertical dry tooling; M6 is vertical to overhanging with difficult dry tooling; M7 is overhanging with powerful and technical dry tooling and less than 10 meters of hard climbing; M8 features nearly horizontal overhangs requiring very powerful and technical dry tooling, with bouldery or longer cruxes than M7; M9 is either continuously vertical or slightly overhanging with marginal or technical holds, or a juggy roof of 2 to 3 body lengths; M10 requires at least 10 meters of horizontal rock or 30 meters of overhanging dry tooling with powerful moves and no rests; M11 is a rope length of overhanging gymnastic climbing or up to 15 meters of roof; M12–M14 involve bouldery, dynamic moves and tenuous technical holds. Jeff Lowe's 1996 book Ice World equated M8 to 5.12 on the Yosemite Decimal System, while later authors have aligned M8 with 5.10/5.11, but no consensus exists on such comparisons.

Evolution of grade milestones

Notable mixed climbs mark the evolution of grade milestones. In 1994, Jeff Lowe made the first ascent of Octopussy (WI6 M8 R) in the Fang Amphitheater, Vail, USA, considered the first M8 and the route that gave birth to the sport; it was only partially bolted and carries an R suffix. In 1997, Will Gadd climbed Amphibian (WI5+ M9) in the Fang Amphitheater, the first M9; that same year, Stevie Haston climbed 009 (M9) in Valsavarenche, Val di Cogne, Italy, and Pete Takeda and Jeff Lowe climbed Fatman and Robin (M9, also D9) in the Fang Amphitheater, one of the first M9s and nearly a full dry-tooling route. In 1998, Stevie Haston made the first M10 with X-Files in Val di Cogne, and Will Gadd climbed Reptile (WI4 M10) in the Fang Amphitheater; both grades have since softened to about M9+. In 2000, Stevie Haston climbed Empire Strikes Back (M11) in Valsavaranche, Val di Cogne, the first M11, now considered closer to M10+. In 2001, Will Gadd climbed Misson Impossible (M11) in Valsavaranche, still a benchmark for the grade, and also Musashi (M12) in Cineplex Cave, Alberta, the first M12 and still a benchmark. In 2003, Robert Jasper climbed Vertical Limits (M12) in Ueschinen, Kandersteg, Switzerland, an early M12 and classic testpiece. Also in 2003, Ben Firth made the first ascent of The Game (M13) in Cineplex Cave, one of the first M13s; it was reclimbed in 2005 by Evgeny Krivosheytsev and by Will Gadd without heel spurs as The Game Reloaded, regraded to M13+.